What Your Customers can be able to pay you with cryptocurrency

Feb 15, 2023

It is essential to know the viewpoint of your customers in particular at critical point of conversion like the checkout. A critical part of an effective checkout experience is offering an easy, secure process for customers to pay out with the option of payment they prefer.

In this piece this article, we'll assist you in understanding the process of making a payment from the point of view of your clients' of view. With this knowledge you'll be able to identify opportunities to boost your conversion rate, offer assistance directly, and inform the customers and potential customers.

Crypto vocab check

You can dig into the various terms little more in this article. Here's a brief overview of the most important terms:

Public key: Essentially what you need is information for sending you cryptocurrency.

Public address The hashed (basically smaller) version of a public key. It is the kind of address you could share with someone who wants to transfer money. Imagine it as being a Venmo username, or PayPal.me hyperlink. (e.g., 0x12B0aD31f483Cdf4741de8f5679A472E5fe3345G)

Keys that are private: allows the user to have access to the funds transferred to a public key. The private key should never be divulged to another person.

Web3: Defined by AP Stylebook, Web3 is a catchall term for the prospect of a new stage of the internet driven by the cryptocurrency-related technology, blockchain.

Web3-based wallet (crypto wallet): Stores public and private keys to facilitate blockchain transactions.

Seed phrases: A list composed of 12-24 random-generated words which allow access to a Wweb3 wallet. This can be used to gain access back to a wallet for cryptocurrency. The information should not be shared with another party.

The non-custodial wallet is owned by the user. their private keys and possess all access to their wallet on Wweb3. (e.g., Metamask, Trust Wallet. )

Custodial wallet: Private keys are possessed by third-party organizations. (e.g., Coinbase, OpenNode. )

Peer-to-peer payments

You might be thinking "Isn't an important benefit of cryptocurrencies the fact that they're peer-to peer and do not rely on third-party services?"

Absolutely, it is possible to get the money of a client without the need to utilize an external tool or third-party tool.

This is simply not feasible for the typical user. They're not going to run an individual node, create transactions via a command line, and memorize the private keys to their account. Likewise, most merchants are happy to accept a modest fee for transactions to give customers a low-friction service, and also save themselves much time and energy reconciling payments to their orders.

Therefore, this post focuses on typical ecommerce transactions using products and services that are likely to be adopted by novice and intermediate users.

An overview of how to make a cryptocurrency payment

From the perspective of a consumer There are three main steps to follow:

  1. Access a fully funded crypto wallet.
  2. Connect their wallet.
  3. Pay the amount and you will get a receipt.

The experience you get will be based on the processor that processes payments and wallets used. Let's run through a couple of examples and talk about what's happening at each step to your client.

1. Access a fully funded cryptocurrency wallet

There are many options to those who are looking for cryptocurrency wallets. Every option has specific features, advantages as well as support for various cryptocurrencies, chains, and the payment experience.

'Traditional' digital wallet providers like PayPal as well as CashApp are now able to accept payment via crypto. Industry-leading crypto exchanges like Coinbase, Crypto.com, and Binance provide their own apps that also function as payment wallets. Then there are crypto-native wallets like MetaMask, Rainbow, and numerous others. Do yourself a thorough research and determine which option is best to suit your needs.

Once you have chosen a wallet and setting it in place, your next thing to do is to include a cryptocurrency to it so that you have an available balance to spend. It is typically a simple process because most wallets offer an in-app payment option.

How does a buyer decide which currency to use?

This is a good question! In most cases, it doesn't really matter, except for the charges that could add up if they have to exchange currency. Some crypto payment processors will offer automatic exchange services which allow users to pay you in one currency and you receive it in another.

If that's not feasible some crypto wallets have the ability to exchange or swap their wallets in real time, so when a user has bitcoin (BTC) but wants to make a payment in ethereum (ETH) then they are able to make that swap effortlessly. The ideal scenario is to load your wallet with the money you wish to pay in, but that's impossible in advance of deciding to make a purchase.

2. Make sure that their wallet is connected on your site

There are two main methods that customers can connect their wallets to your site: QR code or browser wallet connect. Crypto payment processors may offer either or both as choices.

QR code

This method is ideal for customers who have their crypto wallet installed as an application on their smartphone. If someone decides to pay via cryptocurrency, they'll be presented with an QR code they can scan with a utility in the app for their crypto wallet.

Image illustrating how crypto payments are made via QR code. 
Image text:
Crypto app payment via QR code
1. Merchant provides a QR code at checkout.
2. Customer scans the QR code to review and authorize the transaction in their crypto app.
3. Merchant site confirms receipt and completes the purchase.
Steps for receiving crypto payments by QR code.

Browser wallet connect

This is the best option for users who have access to their crypto wallet via an extension for their browser on the web. When someone chooses this route it prompts them to join their Web3 wallet via an icon, which opens the wallet in the browser and then asks for permission for connection.

Image illustrating how crypto payments are made via browser extension.
Image text:
Crypto wallet payment via browser extension
1. Merchant provides crypto payment options and browser wallet connection prompt.
2. Customer selects their browser wallet to review and authorize the transaction within the extension.
3. Merchant site confirms receipt and completes the purchase.
How to pay for crypto through browser extensions.

3. Complete the payment and get a receipt.

Whatever method the user chooses to use, the wallet will then provide prompts that guide them through making payment - either in either the app or on the web browser.

After payment has been made it can take a delay (usually only seconds) until the payment is verified by the blockchain. At this point, the customer and you will receive confirmation. When transactions are conducted directly on the blockchain, you could be both issued the blockchain transaction ID.

Then, that's it!

What do crypto payments procedures translate to merchants?

There's a significant difference between a customer who is already experienced with crypto and ready to complete a transaction as opposed to someone who has never heard of the cryptocurrency prior to. Setting up the right crypto wallet, financing it, and knowing how to make the transaction are all obstacles in the way of access.

Initial crypto payments are likely to come from more experienced crypto users. Over time, this number will likely to increase dramatically. So, if your followers and clients have stated that they're interested in crypto, it may be worthwhile to refer them to reliable sources so they can learn the best way to pay you the manner they want.

The advantages of using crypto payments for your clients

  1. The holders of crypto would like to use the money! Maybe they're an early investor, a great trader, or they get their money in crypto.
  2. It's less expensive for them to make direct payments to crypto rather than pay exchange and/or charges for forex transactions in traditional payment methods. This can be especially the case for international customers.
  3. They may not be able to use alternative payment options.
  4. It is possible that they would prefer to keep certain transactions private or separate from other financial transactions.
  5. The majority of them feel that it's more comfortable and safe.
  6. They value being able to transact without paying fees to traditional financial service providers (i.e., they're ideologically-driven).
  7. There are no limits to daily payment amounts - this particularly applies to high-cost, luxury items that might exceed a limit on a daily basis for a user's bank account.
  8. They're paying for a digitally-native asset like an NFT.

Customers' needs to be kept in your

You can see that there's a wide range of options in the field of payment via crypto based on customer experience. Here are some points to keep in mind while choosing and operating crypto payment options:

  1. How easy is it for your clients to pay, and with what cryptocurrency?
  2. Do you have customers who are exposed to the fees of crypto networks directly? This can make it harder for them spend if the crypto network is very busy.
  3. Are you confident about the process of dispute resolution? It is crucial in the absence of traditional payment and refund options. Unhappy or angry customers are more likely to make complaints and post negative reviews.
  4. How long will customers need to wait for confirmation of orders? Based on the method you're using to allow your customers to pay for their purchases for their purchases, they could have wait longer than normal. Again, this is where using a payments partner can help, as they can often keep both fees and the time to confirm transactions very minimal.
  5. Do consumers require an education? The customers may be interested in learning the ways to pay using crypto. They also need advice regarding security and how to avoid fraudulent transactions.

Confidently help your customers embrace the future of payments

Merchants have the option of choosing crypto payment processing methods that are straightforward and familiar. On the other hand, be experiencing a distinct payment experience.

There are millions of users who are eager, ready and capable of paying with the crypto. Even though crypto payments are getting easier and more straightforward, it's still important for retailers to be aware of the experiences of their customers and the consequences of their actions in order to make the most out of this opportunities for growth.